22. Episode 15 Paya
We’ve been sitting at The Summit for what feels like days. Steph’s been hammering us with questions, and Blair keeps tying herself into knots trying to answer them. The bench is restless. We haven’t even voted yet.
“I did not steal anything.” Blair’s eyes are full of fury, cheeks flushed as firelight flickers across her face.
Saffron twists in her seat. “Give it up, Blair. I found the stash you tried to bury and you left some evidence hidden under your bag.”
“Someone is trying to set me up. Don’t you see what’s happening?” Blair points at Jeida. “Obviously, her.”
Arlie’s glare is cutting. “You stole my knife.”
“And the machete I tore camp apart looking for all of a sudden happened to conveniently be where you’ve been doing your little relic searches?” Raina folds her arms.
Blair’s mouth opens, then closes. She grips her pearl necklace so tight her knuckles go white.
I don’t say a word, letting the chaos unfold. It’s almost beautiful watching her unravel. Blair can look for a culprit all she wants, but she’ll never guess how perfectly she fell right into my traps. This is the type of sabotage I can support.
Blair stands and finally snaps, her soft, innocent tone long gone.
“You know what? Forget this. I’m done explaining myself to petulant people who clearly can’t connect two dots.
Steph, I came on this show for the experience.
For inspiration for my next art collection, not to get insulted by the unintelligent.
I don’t need a single dollar of this prize money.
” She turns toward Jeida. “You should be thanking me for tolerating you, not trying to ruin my reputation.”
Saffron scoffs. “There’s a word for that.”
“And the rest of you,” Blair says, sweeping her eyes over the benches. “The bar is on the floor. I can’t believe you’d side with that bitch after I’ve been carrying this team since week one. Not a single one of you has had the basic decency to recognize that.”
Jeida leans back, arms crossed, a smile tugging at her lips. “There she is.”
Seated, Steph lets the silence stretch, then she tips the end of her staff upward. “Jeida. Anything to say to that?”
Head tilted and lips pursed, Jeida locks onto Blair’s glare, then leans forward. “You know, Steph, coming into tonight, I knew I was at the bottom.” She shrugs with a laugh. “Maybe I still am, but at least I’m not in hell with her.”
“I do love this game.” Steph fails to hold back her chuckle. “On that note. Does anyone want to play anything that might change their odds?”
“Good thing I went out this morning because I did find something valuable. Unlike what’s sitting around me.” Blair’s hand goes immediately to the pouch at her hip and pulls out a folded piece of wood wrapped in twine and holds it up.
I gasp. No. This can’t be happening. I yank my head toward Saffron, Raina, and Arlie, who look as surprised as I am.
Blair flashes us an evil fake grin, then faces Steph. “I’d like to play this Sappho’s Relic. Any votes against me won’t count.”
My heart pounds against my chest watching Steph carefully inspect the relic. She holds it to the light and turns it over once in her hand. Then again. “Blair, I’m sorry. This is not a real Sappho’s Relic.”
Blair’s face drains of color. “What do you mean it’s not real? That’s impossible.” Blair cuts herself off, eyes flicking around the bench. The fury is back in her cheeks.
Saffron waves. “Steph, you’re going to need some sage after tonight.”
Steph smiles, but doesn’t respond. “Tonight has certainly been eventful. Time to vote.”
Voting happens much faster than The Summit questions. Confident in who I’m sending home, I write Blair’s name and slide the parchment into the chest. Each vote gets read one by one. All the same name, except one.
Lastly, Steph reaches inside the golden chest and reads the final vote. “The second person voted out on The Final Summit is…Blair. Blair, bring me your fire.”
Without another word, Blair walks to the front and hands Steph her torch.
Steph nods. “Your team has chosen. Your climb ends here.”
Blair’s torch arcs across the night sky like a firework in a long bright streak before plunging into the ocean below.
I don’t blink during the minute of silence. Blair doesn’t look back at us as she walks the trail exiting The Summit. The minute her shadow disappears down the path, we all exhale audibly. I glance at Jeida, catching the single tear running down her cheek, and I give her a small, knowing nod.
* * *
The next morning, I crawl out of the shelter, unable to sleep after last night’s drama.
A pale gray dawn filters through the trees over the camp.
The fire has burned down, leaving a faint smoke rising into the cool morning air.
The only sounds are from Cluck pecking at the damp dirt near the firepit.
I join the four others scattered around the shelter, slowly waking. Jeida’s already sitting alone on the opposite side of the fire, away from everyone, her face unreadable as she stares at the fading embers.
I rub my eyes, exhausted from the events of the last few days.
I watch as Saffron stands, enters the shelter, and returns with her jacket and a coconut.
Without comment, she walks over to Jeida’s side and offers them to her.
They don’t exchange words. Saffron simply sits down right beside her in the sand.
Raina isn’t far behind and plops on the log.
Arlie follows suit, hands buried into her pant pockets. She lowers down beside Jeida without a word, her boots shifting the loose sand. Slowly, Arlie unearths a small wooden heart with imperfect corners. She must have carved it overnight while the rest of us slept.
Jeida looks down at the carved wood for a long moment, then gives her a weak smile. A quiet understanding passes between them, and she closes her fist tight around it. A peace offering in her own way.
Throat tight, I look away. I want to walk over and apologize, spill the truth about everything, but that’s not an option.
I reach into my pocket and pull out the ivory spiral shell the size of my palm I discovered yesterday.
The pale pink inside is smooth and curls into a soft rainbow coral at the center when you turn it.
I had planned to give it to Celeste, before the conversation that changed everything.
I force my legs to walk over and sit down next to her.
“I’m glad you’re here.” My lips curl into a smile at the way her brown eyes soften. If only she knew how much I meant the words. With only five players on my team left, I’m happy Jeida is one of them.
Jeida turns the shell over in her hands, her fingers tracing the perfect spiral. A faint, genuine smile touches her lips. “It’s beautiful,” she murmurs. “This is the prettiest shell I’ve ever seen. It belongs in a painting.”
Saffron pokes the fire with a long stick, sending a small shower of sparks into the air. “I can’t believe she said all that at The Summit. She really had me fooled. I’m so sorry, Jeida.” The weight of her words hangs in the space around us.
Raina slowly raises her head after Cluck wanders over next to Jeida and sits in her lap. “Me too. I’ll take your chores this week.”
We sit in silence for several minutes, the tension of the chaotic past slowly lifting.
Even all these years later, I still catch myself wondering how I missed the signs. How someone with that much softness on the surface could be so ruthless underneath.
Deep down, I always knew something was off, but I was too busy silencing my own gut, drowning out my instincts because I desperately wanted to belong in the industry.
Lola didn’t just steal my idea. She stole my friendship.
She stole my vulnerability. My trust. Pieces of myself I’ll never get back.
I traded my intuition for a counterfeit connection and in the end, it cost me everything.
It’s the reason I didn’t pick up a pen or step foot inside an audition room for years.
But I finally learned how loud my instincts actually are, and how dangerous it is to ever ignore them again.
I finally break the silence. “Funny how the ones with the sweetest smiles leave the deepest scars.”